Airlines cancel 9,000 flights, waive change fees

WilliamSpain

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) — Almost 9,000 flights throughout the U.S. were canceled through Tuesday and more were expected by nightfall as the nation’s largest airports and airlines braced for Hurricane Sandy’s potentially devastating impact.

“We are continuing to monitor the storm’s progress and will adapt the operations as necessary going forward,” said US Airways spokesman Andrew Christie.

Reuters

Airlines have already grounded 5,600 flights due to Hurricane Sandy and more travel disruption is expected Sunday and Monday, particularly at New York-area airports.

Flights are being canceled on a minute-by-minute basis, according to FlightAware.com, which carries real-time cancellation information.

While the New York airports remained open Monday morning, flooding is expected in the evening and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is urging airlines to cancel all operations. Massive cancellations occurred at Newark, John F. Kennedy International and La Guardia Airports amid the shutdown of New York City’s bus, subway and commuter rail systems that began at 7 p.m. Sunday. Mayor Michael Bloomberg also ordered a mandatory evacuation of the low-lying Zone A, which covers heavily populated areas from Battery Park to Coney Island to Atlantic Beach.

Cancellations also piled up at Washington Dulles, Reagan National and Boston Logan International. Philadelphia was shut down entirely. The ripple effect spread west to Chicago O’Hare as well as Los Angeles International and Houston Bush International.

Every major airline has waived change fees, which can run as high as $150 for each leg, and urged those traveling into at least 22 East Coast airports to reschedule or cancel those trips as Hurricane Sandy hits the East Coast. Forecasters predict that water surges could soar as high as 8 feet stretching from Cape Hatteras, N.C., to Boston and even as far north as Bangor, Maine.

US Airways
US:LCC
has issued a travel advisory and waived change fees for 44 airports it expects the hurricane to affect. Passengers can switch flights until Nov. 4.

American Airlines
US:AAMRQ
added 22 U.S. airports where fees will be waived for one ticket change for travel no later than Nov. 4.

Typically carriers will issue alerts on their websites and in most cases on their Facebook pages and through their Twitter accounts. Passengers can also sign up for a real-time, travel-alert text message to their phones as conditions warrant it.

Delta Air Lines
DAL, +1.80%
said it would refund canceled or significantly delayed flights out of Jamaica, Haiti and the Bahamas. The carrier added eight U.S. airports on the East Coast to that policy. Even if flights aren't canceled, the carrier will make a one-time free change to your ticket but travel must begin no later than Nov. 4 for the U.S. flights.

United Airlines has waived fees on trips rescheduled out of 22 U.S. airports and seven in the Bahamas as long as you travel by Nov. 4 domestically and Oct. 31 from the islands. If you hold out for a year, the change fee will be waived but you will have to pay any fare differences, according to the airline.

“We will include additional airports and dates of travel as the storm’s path is clearer,” said Charles Hobart, a United
UAL, +1.29%
spokesman. “Meanwhile, we advise customers traveling in the next week through East Coast airports to sign up for flight status updates at united.com, where they can also find updates to our travel waiver.”

Southwest Airlines
LUV, +2.09%
, which doesn't charge change fees as a rule, is offering flexible travel accommodations for fliers out of 11 airports on Monday and Tuesday. It does charge you if the fares have changed but in weather-related cases such as this, that is waived too.

JetBlue
JBLU, +2.06%
has waived change and cancellation fees as well as fare differences for flights in and out of 11 airports until Oct. 31. Travel must be booked by Nov. 4.

Virgin America has done the same and flights must be booked by Nov. 10.

Consumers should check their carrier’s websites and sign up for alerts for real-time updates. International travelers will be affected as well.

How to reach the airlines

Here are the travel-alert websites for major airlines:

American Airlines: http://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInformation/travelAlerts.jsp

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